Riley Gaines and Simone Biles (Photos via Getty Images)
Riley Gaines is open to working with Simone Biles despite their recent beef.

The females got into it with each other on social media earlier this month after Gaines criticized a high school softball team for fielding a male player on a girls’ roster. The exchange saw Biles lash out at the former swimmer and liken her to a man before walking back on her words with an apology a few days later.

TMZ Sports recently spoke to Riley, asking her whether she would be willing to work alongside Biles. She quickly answered in the affirmative.

“Absolutely,” she said, adding, “Look, Simone is someone I’ve looked up to, I’ve respected for so long. She has done so much for women’s sports, of course, for the sport of gymnastics, but even broader than that for women in general.”

Riley Gaines Views Simone Biles As A Potential Ally

Simone Biles and Riley Gaines (Photos via Imagn Images)
Riley said Biles’ words hurt not just because they included personal attacks, but because she advocated for upcoming female athletes to put up with challenges she never had to face herself.

“In the blink of an eye, she effectively pulled up the ladder behind her,” Gaines explained.” And again, a way that was, I think, done in haste. I think there was a lot of ignorance to the issue when she issued her initial tweets on that Friday evening.”

Still, Riley Gaines sees Biles as someone who would be a “fantastic ally” in her fight to remove men from women’s sports.

“I think we could do a lot together if she was willing to do it,” she said.